***

  David floated in the air, a sense of serenity shrouding him. It had been a while since he left the isolation of Kamia, and he expected the rest of the Earthen Union to have changed a lot. Still, he hadn’t expected to find this merely a few hours after crossing the mountain range surrounding Kamia.

  To the right lay massive stretches of wastelands. However, they did not resemble those in Kamia; instead, they were riddled with gaping holes and wide craters. Clear signs of extensive battles scarred the land, and it was evident which side had won. If the living had won, the wastelands would not have spread this far across the land. But since the wasteland covered the scars of countless battles, the End must have emerged victorious.

  To his left, David spotted several Sanctuaries as well as smaller settlements in a region abundant with flora and fauna. All kinds of monsters, flowers, and plants he had never seen before filled the land. Semi-translucent barriers engulfed the settlements. Thick and strong, they were interlinked with the land’s Weave but fluctuated whenever the ground shook violently.

  Between the wastelands to his right and the flourishing lands to his left lay the border separating them. They pressed firmly against one another, with the land of abundant life blocking the force of nothingness as it tried to push farther.

  Then there were the armies of both sides. Two massive armies filled the wide border region with tens of thousands of Classers and Voidlings. The armies clashed, unraveling brutal spells, slinging boiling clumps of flesh and Nihilum at the Classers, who responded with glistening projectiles that tore through the weak Void Barriers of Saplings as well as the wastelands.

  The Classers—mostly Vanguards, Guardians, and the like—inched closer to the border, defensive Skills at the ready, while the Voidlings bolted ahead. They darted across the border and leaped at their enemies, Nihilum coating their claws and fangs. Shimmering lights and hues of all elements coated the Classers, empowering them as the first Saplings pounced.

  The Guardians’ heels dug deep into the ground as the masses impacted, but they prevailed and pushed back. Claws raked across shields, arm guards, and heavy-plated breastplates, tearing through mortal material and barely missing raw flesh. Others were not as lucky. The maw of a larger Sapling snapped shut around a young tirac, biting his head off with a sickening crunch.

  As the tirac slumped to the ground, two more low-leveled Classers rushed forward. Their mouths opened for screams, but their voices were swallowed by the cacophony of death and destruction filling the battlefield. Even so, their attacks struck true. Swords emitting holy light tore through the Sapling’s Void Barrier. One pierced its chest while another sliced across its throat, cutting deep.

  Scenes like this repeated all over the battlefield. Death was ever-present, yet the Voidlings weren’t at an advantage. If anything, the Voidlings and weaker Fragments were at a drastic disadvantage. For every Classer they injured, a Voidling died.

  However, the strongest Fragments compensated for that disadvantage. They fought several Sworn and Champions simultaneously, inflicting wounds laced with Nihilum—wounds that had to be treated immediately if the victims were to survive.

  David watched the battlefield for a moment and would have joined, if not for the second playground above the Classers. Powerhouses levitated in the air above the dying masses, staring at one another with cold eyes.

  He located a dozen Voidre, one of which felt stronger than the others—distinct. While the Weave had some effect on Voidre, it did not fully bind them. But that was not the case for the stronger Voidre. It glided through the Weave yet never truly touched it.

  Is that an Overlord? David tilted his head and shifted his stance to prepare for battle when one of the four-legged Voidre roared aloud. It bounced through the air and charged at the closest Ascendant. The others followed, and the Ascendants dashed forward as well.

  Claws brandished and fangs bared, the Voidre attacked—two pouncing on every Ascendant. The Ascendants were at a vast numerical disadvantage, yet they performed well, evading incoming attacks and stalling for time as their leader shot forward. One of the Ascendants, his connection to the Weave stronger than David’s, disappeared in a flash. Space didn’t distort as the Ascendant moved faster than David’s eyes could track at first, transforming into an azure-blue streak as blazing flames erupted all around him.

  One of the Voidre leaping at the Ascendant didn’t even realize what was happening before it was torn to shreds. The Ascendant turned to the second target and appeared before it, ready to burn it alive, when the Overlord—David was still not entirely sure if it was an Overlord—emerged between them. It blocked the fist coated in azure-blue flames with a shield conjured from all-consuming darkness and counterattacked.

  After a rapid exchange of claws and fists, moving faster than David could see, they burst high into the sky and momentarily disappeared from view. He overclocked [True Sight] and had to infuse as much pure Blood into Bloodthrone Dominion as his aching eyes could handle just to glimpse the figures clearly.

  An Overlord and a Minor God going at it? David thought in wonder, shuddering in excitement rather than fear.

  His lips curled into a savage grin as he prepared to join the battle at any moment. Vitae Nihilum poured out of the Corrupted Divine Heart. It surged through his body, seeped out of his pores, and coated his skin in a thick layer. Swords—both Obsidian Blade in its longest form and Serpent Fang—materialized in his hands. Then [Crimson Bulwark], connected to Scalemore, and [Bloodbound Bastion] formed around him. Yet as the bloodied armor came into being, shining more brilliantly than ever, David willed it to merge with the mantle of Vitae shrouding him.

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  He cast [Herald’s Blessing] on his equipment, Skills, his body, and on Electra as he summoned the Sacred Beast, fusing with her.

  His eyes twitched and itched as his vision improved, and ethereal, crimson wings sprouted from his back. Vitae dripped onto the ethereal wings, tainting them—reinforcing them. David took a deep breath as raw power steamrolled through his body, activating every cell inside him. He kicked the empty air with a burst of Might, solidifying it momentarily. A thunderous explosion resounded as he bolted through the air, flapping his wings, and he cast [Phantom Rush], crossing the gaping distance to the nearest Voidre in an instant.

  The first Voidre didn’t even move as David emerged behind it. Did it think he was one of them? The Ascendant forced to defend against the pair of Voidre certainly thought so. Her eyes widened and she failed to defend herself, flinching and freezing in her tracks.

  “Keep moving, idiot,” David snarled, Serpent Fang at the ready.

  The massive claymore cleaved through the Voidre before its claws could rip the frozen Ascendant apart. He didn’t spare her a glance, nor did he wait until the creature succumbed to its wounds. He had already expanded the range of Passage with a second burst of Might and teleported above the second beast, a massive four-legged Voidre resembling a ten-meter-tall Titanheart Elephant.

  The Obsidian Blade vibrated and thirsted for blood—for lifeforce—as he rammed it downward, piercing the Voidre’s defense in one go. The Void Barrier failed to protect the Voidre as Vitae surged through the blade, cutting deep into the massive Voidling’s skull. Nihilum tried to destroy the Obsidian Blade, instinctive as the power of the End itself, yet Vitae poured out of the weapon in masses, devouring Nihilum and the brain of the Voidre at once.

  David unleashed a force of 100 units of Vitae in one go, and it erupted, devouring the devourer.

  The Voidre pouncing on the female Ascendant was dead and being consumed, so he turned to the still-frozen woman.

  “Help the mortals,” David said in a commanding tone. Then he turned to the next Voidre, flapped his wings with a burst of Might, and propelled himself toward it.

  He unleashed waves upon waves of pure Blood and Might to extend his range of Passage in all directions and wreaked havoc, uncaring of how much attention his antics drew. Nonetheless, it was not until the sixth Voidre died that they all noticed him—including the pair of a Major God and the Overlord.

  A ripple in the Weave was all David needed to know what awaited him. He upped his guard, prepared for it, but it was still jarring to be slower than his enemies. The Overlord appeared before him, moving faster than he could react. Its claws were brandished and it lunged at David.

  The Minor God appeared nearby as well, although a moment too late. He shouted something, but David heard nothing, nor did he move with Passage when the Overlord’s claws pierced through his armor and flesh. The Overlord’s razor-sharp claws dug deep into his abdomen, planting a horrendous amount of Nihilum that devoured him from the inside out. His body, empowered and immortalized by Might, was shredded to pieces, yet David remained unmoving. He watched the Overlord and studied it from close range.

  It was clearly faster than he was. Stronger as well. Even the power of the End ravaged like a primordial beast as it tore through him with a potency he had never felt before. David was weaker than the Overlord in every possible way, and the Overlord knew that too. However, it did not kill him instantaneously. It wanted to see him suffer, devour him slowly while his body struggled desperately against the destructive potency of Nihilum.

  Against other Ascendants, that tactic might work. It may even benefit the Overlord to kill Ascendants and Minor Gods slowly, as slow consumption produced more Nihilum. But using the same tactic against David was a mistake.

  “That… hurt a lot more than I expected.” He groaned and winced as Nihilum nestled in his abdomen.

  Two Arcanas—Fountain of Life as well as Titanblood—activated on their own as Nihilum spread through his body. Lifeforce streamed through him and toward his abdomen, restraining the spread of Nihilum while also slowing the corruption of his body. [Mender’s Lattice] tried to heal his wounds, but the Spark was far too weak to mend damage inflicted by Nihilum.

  Might flowed out of the Divine Seed and into the lifeforce containing the deadly force of Nihilum, forcing it backward, which only seemed to irritate the Overlord more. It snarled at David and clawed him again, forcing more Nihilum into his abdomen.

  Arcana, Fountain of Life, leveled up.

  83 → 84

  Arcana, Titanblood, leveled up.

  1 → 2

  The letters flowing before his eyes were pleasant, but the level-ups did not improve his survivability by much. Instead, David cast and overclocked [Transcendent Restoration], alongside [Vital Weaving] and [Weave of Life]. Lifelines formed in the air beneath them, but he barely noticed as the Overlord twisted its claws in his abdomen.

  David let out a pained groan but moved on regardless. He dismissed Serpent Fang in his left arm and stretched out Deryadus’ Arm. The Relic bulged and split apart. What once appeared as a firm, metallic arm was now a wiggling mess of tendrils. They resembled angered serpents as they stiffened before shooting toward the Overlord.

  The Overlord studied the tendrils but didn’t move right away. Instead, it rammed its claw deeper into David’s chest, then upward, all while pumping more and more Nihilum into him.

  His abdomen was a mangled mess, a cataclysmic battlefield that looked worse by the second. Nihilum spread outward and consumed a portion of his abdomen successfully, and the Overlord’s claws did the rest, pulling out a chunk of flesh and intestines. David roared in pain as the Overlord’s other claws raked across his wounded abdomen, nearly separating his lower half from his upper body. It was barely hanging on by a thread, but so be it. He could always recover—as long as he was still alive.

  He smiled grimly, forcing his will through the pain as the arm’s tendrils latched onto the Overlord, and he emptied his Corrupted Divine Heart into it. A roar echoed in David’s ears as the floodgates of Vitae surged through the tendrils of Deryadus’ Arm. The Void Barrier fluctuated, and it pulled back, stunned. David was free, and he fell from the sky. His back hit the ground hard, but his eyes stayed trained on the Overlord, watching the battle that unfolded within the Voidling now.

  His lifeforce was waning and he was half-dead, and Electra’s fusion dissipated, yet he was still breathing… and bleeding. David felt something stir within him one moment, and in the next Electra manifested inside his body. She was small, merely a few millimeters tall and wide, and she slithered through his blood vessels, emitting Vitae to cleanse his body, keeping the corruption of Nihilum in check. Unfortunately, it was to no avail. Electra never had much Vitae to use, nor did she have the control needed to circumvent the highly destructive properties of an Overlord’s power. Therefore, David did the only thing he could think of; He called upon the Law of Blood to conjure a guillotine’s blade above him and had it come crashing down, cleaving his body in two.